Who funds food waste research?

We count 46 funded food waste projects, active between 2021 and 2031, from 5 funders. The most came from EU · Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment (15 projects), USDA (13 projects) and EU · MSCA (7 projects). The median award is $1.2M, across the 45 of 46 projects that list an amount.

Funded projects

46

Funders

5

Median award

$1.2M

Open calls now

1

Top funders of food waste research

Projects whose title or summary mentions food waste. Median award: of the projects that list an amount, in US dollars; “—” when fewer than 3 do.

Open food waste funding calls

1 open call mentions food waste today.

• Food Waste Mitigation
  National Science Foundation (SBIR/STTR)Not specifiedDeadline: July 7, 2027 ·

Funded food waste projects

A sample, latest start first, at most three per program.

• Farm-to-school (f2s) programs are vital for improving child nutrition and supporting regional agricultural economies
  USDA · $6,218,999 · ends 2031
• Food waste is a significant challenge in the united states, which affectsthe efficiency of food systems and the use of agricultural…
  USDA · $584,479 · ends 2030
• Pumpkins are an iconic us crop grown for fall season harvest
  USDA · $3,294,359 · ends 2030
• Royal Holloway and Bedford New College and Eden Research plc KTP 25_26 R1
  UKRI · Innovate UK · £235,069 · ends 2028
• Onza Corp — Agricultural Development
  Gates Foundation · $1,494,786 · ends 2028
• Food Redistribution and Responsibility
  UKRI · ESRC · ends 2027
• Comprehensive strategies for monitoring, preventing and reducing edible food waste in households
  EU · Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment · €3,999,879 · 2027–2030 · FUNDACION AZTI - AZTI FUNDAZIOA
• NOVEL POST-HARVEST VALORISATION OF AGRICULTURAL RESIDUES AND SURPLUS CROPS FOR HIGH-VALUE PRODUCTS
  EU · Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment · €4,799,996 · 2027–2030 · TEKNOLOGISK INSTITUT
• SBIR Phase I: Recovering Damaged Coastal Ecosystems Using Upcycled Food Waste
  NSF · TIP · $305,000 · ends 2026
• Autonomous Bio-nutrient Recovery from Organic Waste (ABROW)
  UKRI · Innovate UK · £621,582 · ends 2026

How we count

Funded projects come from public award records (NIH RePORTER, NSF, EU CORDIS, UKRI Gateway to Research, Wellcome, the Gates Foundation, DOE, NASA and USDA NIFA) whose title or summary matches “food waste or food loss”. NIH lists each budget year separately; one project counts once. Amounts are as the funder lists them; medians use only projects that list one, in US dollars. Open calls and forecasts are from our listings of October 28, 2026. A project can mention a topic without being mainly about it, so treat the counts as a guide to who funds the area.